Slightly fewer than 1 in 8 online video ads in the US were targeted towards the 65+ crowd during Q3, according to Videology’s latest quarterly report [download page] on its platform’s activity. Interestingly, among the various age groups, this demo proved the most likely to click on a video ad, with an index of 103.3, slightly above the index score for 18-24-year-olds (102.1). Even on what some argue to be a more important metric – video completion rates – the older group held up well.

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With a view completion rate index of 100.6, the 65+ crowd tied with the 55-64 group and kept pace with 18-24-year-olds (100.7).

A plurality 23% of ads targeted the 45-54 audience, although these viewers proved the least likely on average to click on an ad (index of 97.8), while being right on average in terms of completion rates. The next-most targeted demo, 35-44-year-olds (22% share of ads) were slightly more likely to click on an ad (index of 100.7) but less likely to complete one (99.1).

Global eCPM averages remained fairly steady on a quarter-over-quarter basis across display, mobile, and video channels, particularly when compared to trends from prior quarters, according to Turn’s “Global Digital Audience Report” [download page] covering Q3 activity. Display ads saw the largest relative change, as eCPMs averaged out at $1.28 in September, up 4.9% from $1.22 in June following a 16% increase during the prior quarter. After sporting double-digit increases between Q1 and Q2, mobile and video eCPMs showed only marginal changes during the past quarter.

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Mobile’s average eCPM inched up a cent from $1.01 in June to $1.02 in September, a relatively inconsequential 0.9% increase. Online video, the most expensive option, remained basically on par with the prior quarter, with eCPMs averaging $10.97 in September from $11.03 in June, a 0.54% decrease.

The increase in display ad eCPM was attributed to increased activity at the end of Q3 for back-to-school campaigns, while mobile’s flat prices are the result of a hike in impressions keeping pace with demand, according to the analysts.

The study illustrates the most common pricing buckets and formats for each channel:

Display: 53% of impressions are in the $0.10-$0.80 range, mostly unchanged from Q1 and Q2. The most popular display ad formats in Q3, by percentage of impressions, were 728×90 (40.4%) and 300×250 (38.5%), also relatively stable from Q2;

Mobile: 60.6% of impressions are in the $0.10-$1.00 range, up from 56% in Q2 and 52% in Q1. The 320×50 unit was easily the leading mobile ad format, at 82% of impressions, up from 74.9% in Q2, but not quite at Q1′s level (88.5% share); and

Video: 60.3% of impressions are in the $8-12 range, down from 71% in Q2. The leading video ad formats were 15-second pre-rolls (48%, from 43% in Q2) and 30-second pre-rolls (34.1%, from 38.4%).

The cablers and the nets aren’t stupid: They operate like a cartel, restricting supply of inventory even as demand—and audiences—fall.

Shishir Mehrotra, Google’s vp/product for YouTube and video, gave this explanation:

“… video is increasingly going digital and users are now watching across numerous devices. So we’ve made the hard decision to close our TV Ads product over the next few months and move the team to other areas at Google. We’ll be doubling down on video solutions for our clients (like YouTube, AdWords for Video, and ad serving tools for web video publishers). We also see opportunities to help users access web content on their TV screens, through products like Goo! gle TV.”

The cablers and the nets aren’t stupid: They operate like a cartel, restricting supply of inventory even as demand—and audiences—fall.

Shishir Mehrotra, Google’s vp/product for YouTube and video, gave this explanation:

“… video is increasingly going digital and users are now watching across numerous devices. So we’ve made the hard decision to close our TV Ads product over the next few months and move the team to other areas at Google. We’ll be doubling down on video solutions for our clients (like YouTube, AdWords for Video, and ad serving tools for web video publishers). We also see opportunities to help users access web content on their TV screens, through products like Goo! gle TV.”

While some pay-TV providers are tied up in nasty battles with the studios that provide them content, Comcast and Scripps have just inked an agreement to bring the company’s lifestyle programming to cable subscribers over the internet. As noted in the press release (embedded after the break) the multi-year deal brings HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel, Travel Channel and Great American Country to Comcast’s TV Everywhere portal, via mobile (and “other” devices) and on Scripps websites. Probably not a minor element in the deal is the inclusion of support for Comcast’s on the fly ad-insertion for VOD, which should push the efforts of both partners along, although potentially unskippable ads could be less viewer friendly.

Adscend Media is the jerk ad agency responsible for many of the “OMG LOL THIS VIDEO IS SO GOOD JUSTIN BEIBER” links on Facebook that, when clicked, spam the same crap link to your friends. It has just been fined $100,000 by a Washington court for spamming and scamming Facebook users.

The thing is, that $100,000 fine looks tiny compared to the $1.2 million that Adscent Media brings in every month; 80 percent of which comes from the scammy links that, really, should be punishable by orbital bombardment. Facebook itself is trying to legislate stuff like this out of our lives, and this decision is a step in that direction, but there’s still a lot of lawyering left to do. [Venture Beat]

In Tuesday’s reports, Netflix hinted that at least one provider was willing to trial it by year’s end. Comcast would like everybody know that it isn’t them. “We have no plans to offer access to Netflix to our customers through our Xfinity TV service, no matter what device,” Comcast spokeswoman Alana Davis told FierceCable.

Instead, Comcast is exploring the possibility of allowing access to its On-Demand library through TiVo Premiere DVR’s

The provider has also developed its own video subscription service called Steampix. It’s designed to compete head to head with Netflix—allowing Xfinity subscribers to access TV series and movies wirelessly and remotely—but includes the conventional bits of flair we’ve come to expect from cable like an bundled channels. Because who doesn’t want to pay through the nose for content they don’t watch? [Fierce Cable via BGR]

In Tuesday’s reports, Netflix hinted that at least one provider was willing to trial it by year’s end. Comcast would like everybody know that it isn’t them. “We have no plans to offer access to Netflix to our customers through our Xfinity TV service, no matter what device,” Comcast spokeswoman Alana Davis told FierceCable.

Instead, Comcast is exploring the possibility of allowing access to its On-Demand library through TiVo Premiere DVR’s

The provider has also developed its own video subscription service called Steampix. It’s designed to compete head to head with Netflix—allowing Xfinity subscribers to access TV series and movies wirelessly and remotely—but includes the conventional bits of flair we’ve come to expect from cable like an bundled channels. Because who doesn’t want to pay through the nose for content they don’t watch? [Fierce Cable via BGR]

One secret reason why Facebook ad revenues haven’t quite taken off like they should – and are, in fact, decelerating – is that for years now, brands have advertised on Facebook without paying Facebook.

Here’s how they’ve been doing it:

Brands build a “page” on Facebook.

Facebook users become “fans” of that brand page, thanks in part to ad campaigns off Facebook.

The brands post video, photos, or text to the page.

That content goes into fans’ News Feeds.

Yesterday, in front of more than 1,000 advertising executives here in New York, Facebook announced a new ad product it hopes will finally convince brands to do more than use Facebook’s free features.

The pitch boils down to a number: 16%

When a Facebook page owner posts a piece of content to their page, and that content gets disperse red into the News Feeds of that page’s fans, only 16% of those fans will actually see that piece of content.

Facebook’s new ad product, called Reach Generator, is supposed to take that number, 16%, and push it toward 100%. Test campaigns pushed it past 95% in some cases.

Basically, when a brand buys into a Reach Generator campaign, Facebook will push posts from that brands page into its fans’ News Feeds, mobile News Feeds, and log-out screen until almost all of that brand’s fans see it.

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Data is starting to trickle in and shape our understanding of the nascent mobile ad market. According to data from Flurry Analytics, 25- to 34-year-old females are the most valuable demographic for advertisers and publishers (as measured by the underlying click-through and conversion rates).

Digital Consigliere

Dr. Augustine Fou is Digital Consigliere to marketing executives, advising them on digital strategy and Unified Marketing(tm). Dr Fou has over 17 years of in-the-trenches, hands-on experience, which enables him to provide objective, in-depth assessments of their current marketing programs and recommendations for improving business impact and ROI using digital insights.